No dog breeds are banned in Washington State at the state level. Washington regulates dogs by behavior, not breed, under RCW 16.08.110. Individual cities and counties can still restrict specific breeds, and some do, but every local breed-based ordinance must give well-behaved dogs a way out through a good behavior exemption. So the honest answer to which breeds are off-limits depends entirely on where in Washington you live.
No Statewide Ban, But Local Rules Can Restrict Breeds
Washington operates on two layers. The state itself does not prohibit any breed. Cities and counties, however, keep the authority to pass breed-specific ordinances, provided they meet the conditions set out in RCW 16.08.110, which took effect on January 1, 2020.1Washington State Legislature. RCW 16.08.110 Breed-Based Regulations
That means a dog welcome in one Washington city can be restricted a few miles away. If you are moving, traveling with your dog, or thinking about adopting, your local municipal code is the document that actually controls what you can own.
Which Breeds Local Ordinances Target
When Washington cities and counties pass breed-specific rules, the breeds they target most often are pit bull-type dogs, including American Pit Bull Terriers, American Staffordshire Terriers, and Staffordshire Bull Terriers. Rottweilers, Doberman Pinschers, and Chow Chows also appear in some local codes.2MRSC. Dangerous Dogs
The map changes. Yakima repealed its decades-old pit bull ban in 2018. Buckley amended its breed-specific ordinance in 2019 to add the AKC Canine Good Citizen exemption once the state law passed. Checking the current version of your city’s code matters, because what was true a few years ago may no longer be.
What a Local Restriction Can Look Like
Not every breed-specific ordinance is an outright ban. Washington cities use several tools, sometimes stacking more than one:
- Mandatory muzzling in public for dogs of targeted breeds.
- Special licensing or a requirement to carry liability insurance.
- Secure enclosure standards, often specifying fencing designed to prevent escape and keep children out.
- Mandatory spay or neuter for the targeted breed.
A single jurisdiction might require muzzling in public and impose insurance and enclosure rules on top of that. The only way to know the exact combination that applies to you is to read your municipal code.
The Good Behavior Exemption Every Local Ban Must Offer
Even where a city targets a specific breed, your individual dog has a path to stay with you. RCW 16.08.110 makes a local breed-based ordinance enforceable only if the jurisdiction meets four conditions:1Washington State Legislature. RCW 16.08.110 Breed-Based Regulations
- It maintains a reasonable process to exempt any dog that passes the American Kennel Club’s Canine Good Citizen test or a comparable behavioral test chosen by the jurisdiction.
- Dogs that pass are exempt from breed-based rules for at least two years.
- Dogs can retest at the end of the exemption period to keep the exemption active.
- Dogs that fail get another chance to retest within a reasonable timeframe set locally.
Before this law, a Washington city could flatly ban a breed with no option for responsible owners. That is no longer true for dogs.3MRSC. Local Breed-Specific Dog Bans Now Need a Good Behavior Exception
Wolf-Dog Hybrids Are the Real Exception
The good behavior exemption only protects dogs. RCW 16.08.110 defines “dog” as a domesticated member of the species Canis lupus familiaris and explicitly excludes wolves, coyotes, wolf-dog hybrids, and coyote-dog hybrids.1Washington State Legislature. RCW 16.08.110 Breed-Based Regulations Local governments can ban these animals outright, with no behavioral-test workaround, and several Washington municipalities do.
The Dangerous Dog Classification Applies to Any Breed
Separate from any breed-specific local rule, Washington has a statewide dangerous dog system that classifies individual dogs based on what they have actually done. It applies to every breed equally.
A dog is “potentially dangerous” if it bites a person or domestic animal without provocation, chases someone in a menacing way on public grounds, or has a known tendency to attack or threaten safety. A dog is “dangerous” if it causes severe injury to a person without provocation, kills a domestic animal while off the owner’s property, or was previously classified as potentially dangerous and then bites or attacks again.4Washington State Legislature. Chapter 16.08 RCW Dogs – RCW 16.08.070
Owning a dog declared dangerous is still legal, but it requires a certificate of registration from local animal control, a secure enclosure with warning signs, muzzling and a substantial leash whenever the dog leaves the enclosure, and either a $250,000 surety bond or a liability insurance policy in the same amount.5Washington State Legislature. Chapter 16.08 RCW Dogs – RCW 16.08.080 Failing to meet those conditions can trigger immediate confiscation. In short, Washington does not ban breeds, but it does regulate dangerous individual dogs heavily.
Insurance Can Act Like a Breed Restriction
Even where no local ban exists and your dog has never been in trouble, your homeowners insurance carrier may impose its own breed limits. Many insurers maintain lists of breeds they consider high-risk and will exclude them from coverage, charge higher premiums, or decline to write a policy. Breeds commonly flagged include pit bull-type dogs, Rottweilers, Doberman Pinschers, German Shepherds, Chow Chows, Akitas, and Mastiffs. The specific list varies by carrier.
Check with your insurer before assuming you are covered. The practical effect of an insurance exclusion can look a lot like a ban.
Service and Assistance Animals
Local breed restrictions in Washington bend for federal disability law. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, a service animal is a dog individually trained to perform tasks for a person with a disability, and the ADA does not restrict which breeds can qualify.6ADA.gov. ADA Requirements Service Animals A city with a pit bull ban cannot enforce it against a qualified service dog doing its work.
The Fair Housing Act gives similar protection in housing. Landlords and housing providers must make reasonable accommodations for tenants with disabilities who need assistance animals, including trained service dogs and emotional support animals, and generally cannot deny an assistance animal based on breed alone.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 USC 3604 Discrimination in the Sale or Rental of Housing A housing provider can still deny a specific animal that poses a direct threat based on that individual animal’s behavior, but not based on its breed.
How to Confirm the Rules Where You Live
Washington’s breed rules are a patchwork of local ordinances layered on top of state law, so the only reliable way to know what applies is to check the municipality where the dog will live. Start with your city or county’s official website and look for the municipal code or animal control ordinances. If you cannot find the ordinance online, call your local animal control office or city clerk. Do this before you bring a dog home. The rules a few miles away may be different, and not knowing about a local ordinance will not protect you from enforcement.